German Jaguar tuner Arden is currently working on its version of the Jaguar XF. Pricing and technical details have yet to be released but the tuner is teasing us with this teaser image.
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Ford has finally sold its Jaguar and Land Rover subsidiaries to Indian manufacturing giant Tata Motors. The Blue Oval announced the widely anticipated sale to the US stock markets and employees this morning, confirming it was paid $2.3 billion for the two premium British marques. It has sold them wholesale, rather than keeping a stake as it did with Aston Martin - ending a decade of American ownership.
The sell-off has taken so long as the accountants have worked out how to extract these two companies who are inextricably linked. The bean counters have had to separate everything from the IT networks at the Gaydon headquarters to the intellectual property rights over systems like Terrain Response - as well as negotiating with unions over things like pension funds (Ford is expected to pay £300m into two separate funds). 'These things don't happen overnight,' explained a spokesman.
Jaguar’s commitment to creating beautiful, fast cars continues with the introduction of the new XJ Portfolio - first revealed on the Super V8 Portfolio special edition in 2005.
Already renowned for its all-aluminum body construction, state-of-the-art technologies and outstanding craftsmanship and build quality, the new XJ Portfolio is now even more desirable thanks to its unique exterior and interior styling cues.
Luxury, elegance and dynamic performance are XJ signatures. The XJ Portfolio adds a host of bespoke design cues and styling features that set it apart. The exterior is painted in either Celestial Black or Astral Gold, with contrasting side power vents in milled aluminum. A distinctive profile is completed by new 20″ Selena alloy wheels featuring red Jaguar ‘Heritage’ center badges.
XJ Portfolio’s dynamic excellence is underpinned by XJ’s all-aluminum monocoque body construction and highly advanced chassis and suspension. Lightness with strength and exceptional rigidity provide a platform for remarkable agility and performance, as well as safety, improved fuel efficiency and lower emissions. Computer Active Technology Suspension (CATS), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) and a self-leveling air suspension ensure impeccable control and a ride that is involving yet composed and refined.
In the U.S., the 2009MY XJ Portfolio is available with Jaguar’s highly acclaimed 4.2-liter V8 supercharged (400bhp SAE) or the naturally aspirated V8 engine. In either derivative, the XJ Portfolio offers effortless performance and exceptional refinement.
XJ Portfolio’s individuality is further reflected in a luxurious interior characterized by premium quality materials and exquisite attention to detail. The hand-crafted Rich Oak veneer is new to XJ Portfolio, and there is the choice of two unique interior themes – Navy or Ivory. Each features contrast piping to the softgrain leather upholstery, special twin-stitched door casings and headrests embossed with the Jaguar ‘Leaper’ design. The alloy gear selector, with aluminum gearshift surround, is also trimmed with Navy leather, and there are ‘Portfolio’ branded treadplates and special leather-edged carpet mats.
And XJ Portfolio’s premium specification includes individually heated and cooled front seats; 7-inch Touch-screen operation of the satellite navigation, Jaguar premium sound and dual-zone climate control systems; Bluetooth® connectivity for up to five separate telephones; JaguarVoiceTM, Adaptive Cruise Control, and rear multimedia system with DVD player and twin display screens.
James May, the third and least talked about Top Gear guy, had the pleasure of test driving the brand new Jaguar XF. “It goes like a 4-door XK,” says May. He even goes as far as to say that the car is a better value than the BMW 5-Series.
In the U.S. the Jaguar XF will only come in a base 4.2 liter V8 engine that will produce 300 horsepower and a 4.2 liter Supercharged V8 engine that will produce 420 horsepower. Jaguar will offer three trim levels including Luxury, Premium Luxury and Supercharged.
It uses the same supercharged 4.2-litre V8 as the cooking XF, but tuned to a higher state of athleticism. Breathing more deeply with higher boost pressures, this one is said to put out closer to 500bhp. Right on BMW M5 money, then.
This prototype has various telltale signs suggesting this is the musclebound R. Every version seen so far has twin tailpipe exhausts, whereas this model sports quad pipes at the rear; the ride height is noticeably lower; the mesh grille is menacingly blackened; and those huge five-spoke alloys are wrapped around very serious-looking ventilated discs.
Humdrum 2.7 V6 diesel and petrol V6 and V8 models don't go on sale until March 2008, so you're looking at a somewhat longer wait for the high-performance version. We reckon the hot one will be shown at a motor show in late 2008, with sales kicking off in early '09. It should be one of the fastest four-doors on sale, with pace to challenge the Mercedes E63, Audi RS6 and BMW M5.
All this is dependent on the sale of Jaguar, of course. We're still waiting to see which suitor eventually buys the Coventry firm. But that's not stopping the engineers honing this, the most eagerly anticipated sports saloon to wear the leaping cat badge for years.
It's been a long time coming. Eight years late, some would say. For it was in 1999 that Jaguar launched the S-type, its new mid-sized executive saloon to battle the Teutonic might of the 5-series/A6/E-class. From day one, the S was saddled with yesteryear looks that owed more to Jaguar's 1950s past than the new millennium marketplace it was joining.
Sensibly, Jaguar has gone back to the drawing board with its successor, unveiled today. The XF marks such a departure for the Coventry firm that it's ditched the old-world name to reflect the next chapter of Jaguar design. And this is a radical change. Out go the S-type's awkwardly retro nose, saggy bottom and unhappy proportions, to be replaced by something immediately different, more modern. Some insiders call it a Marmite design - one whose flavor you'll either love or hate. Be sure to tell us what you think by clicking 'Add comment' at the bottom.
Be prepared to be surprised - shocked even - when you first clap eyes on an XF. It is different to any Jaguar you've seen before. The boot no longer tapers down at the rear, as Jag saloons have done for so long - it's a edgy, rising lid-line, to the benefit of aerodynamics. Note also the steep rake of the front and rear windscreens - the back window is as steeply angled as that on an XK coupe, incidentally. Small wonder it cleaves the air so efficiently, with a drag coefficient of just 0.29.
There's more sharp edge and wedge everywhere, and less of the rounded radii that made the S-type look out of date before it had even gone on sale. Is there a hint of the Ford group's Mondeo around the rear haunch (above)? Maybe, but the slick and modern rear three-quarters is one of the best angles on the new XF.
It certainly is. As trailed on the C-XF concept car shown at the Detroit show in January 2007, the XF has a distinctive new snout: an upright rectangular grille frames the company's growler badge, and it's flanked by unusually wide flowing headlamps, with just a whiff of Jaguar's traditional round lens in its outline.
The sides, too, have a lot of form, with two signature lines - a strong sewage line and a subtler crease halfway up the doors - providing flowing movement in the flanks. Notice, also, the vertical gill just ahead of the front doors, fast becoming a Jaguar signature flourish.
Jaguars are designed from the outset to wear the biggest wheel/tire combination in each marketplace; the XF sports rims between 17in and 20in in diameter (an inch bigger than rivals, claims Jag) for a purposeful stance.
The exterior might raise some eyebrows, but the XF's cabin is perhaps its crowning glory. This is no stuffy Jag interior of old. It's designed to appeal straight to the young and middle-aged execs this car must attract if Jaguar is to reverse its fading fortunes.
Step inside and you're immediately struck by its simplicity. There is no gear lever or handbrake to clutter the center console. Nor are the air vents visible (they swivel open like eyelids when the ignition is fired up). And there isn't much wood, either, the designers preferring a metallic strip that stretches the full width of the fascia. Tree lovers can of course specify veneers, and there are three choices: American walnut, burl walnut and dark oak.
The early car previewed, prodded and poked was a Supercharged V8 and it felt roomy and well made. Quality is one area Jaguar has already cracked, its products regularly scoring highly in the JD Power reliability surveys on both sides of the Atlantic.
Online was the first outlet in the world to scoop Jaguar's new transmission selector. And, yes, it is essentially a gimmick, albeit one that we think will go down well with customers. It works like this.
The Jaguar Drive Selector replaces a conventional gearstick. Sitting flush with the center console, it rises electrically when the ignition is turned on. It's a metallic rotary dial (not dissimilar to BMW's iDrive control) that twists to change gear on the standard six-speed automatic box, rotating easily between P, R, N and D. We've tested it and its action is pleasant and seamless. Importantly, it frees up oodles of extra space on the console. Jaguar Drive Selector is standard on every XF and they all come with paddles behind the wheel, too. The change is claimed to be quicker than on the XK sports cars and we reckon buyers will quickly adapt to the new gear lever. It's pretty cool and blessedly simple to operate.
It doesn't end with a novelty gearstick, either. There are proximity interior lights; waft your palm near the cabin lights and they switch on. And the dial lights, door trims and transmission selector have cool blue LEDs built in, casting a modern, technical glow across the cockpit at night.
The refreshingly modern XF body is wrapped around an architecture pilfering bits from across the Jaguar range, especially the outgoing S-type. Which is no bad thing. For all its old-fashioned looks, the one thing the S does really well is drive. However, one thing the XF misses out on is Jaguar's world-class aluminum technology - and that's a shame.
It's built predominantly from steel (albeit with some alloy suspension parts) and won't win any weight advantage over its mostly steel-bodied rivals. The lightest XF, the 3.0-litre V6 petrol, weighs in at 1679kg (at least a hundred kilos heavier than a 530i or A6 3.2), ballooning to a more substantial 1842kg for the supercharged V8 (another 100kg over an E500).
Blame Jaguar's cash-strapped finances. Developing an all-new aluminum platform is an expensive business and the bean counters decided early on that it was preferable for the XF to use conventional steel pressings, and invest the money saved in design and technology. Was this a wise decision? We'll reserve judgment until we've driven the XF...
The body shell is bang on the class norm in size. Its length stretches to 4961mm, it's 1877mm wide and a slinky 1460mm tall. Jag claims it's the stiffest car in its class (but then they all say that, don't they?).
Being based largely on a lot of carry-over S-type mechanicals, it's obviously front-engined and rear-drive. Although some of the pressings of the monocoque are the same, the suspension is largely new, borrowing know-how from the aluminum XK's set-up, and every model comes with an auto transmission; no manual option will be offered on the XF.
There's a deployable bonnet, that pops up in a fraction of a second in a frontal accident to provide a cushioning gap to protect pedestrians' heads from the unforgiving engine block below the hood. And Jaguar has surpassed itself in the lengthy alphabet soup of safety acronyms with which to bamboozle the casual buyer in the showroom: there's EBA, EBD, ABS, DSC, CBC, EDTC and UCL... some familiar, others less so. The latter, by the way, is Understeer Control Logic - which trims the brake and throttle settings to avoid any unseemly hedgerows.
Four engines will be offered in Europe. Unsurprisingly in this carbon-obsessed age, the diesel will be the big seller in Europe, whereas the V8 petrols will be the only option in the US at launch:
There's something for everyone, from a brisk diesel (0-60mph in 7.7sec) to the devilishly fast supercharged V8 (the same benchmark in a Porsche-worrying 5.1sec), a car that just breaches the magical 100bhp per liter mark.
No mention of the R yet, but the supercharged 4.2 debuts in the SV8. Jaguar has considerable success with its performance brand, and the engineers are busy fettling the XFR; expect more power, a honed chassis and meaner looks for Coventry's M5 challenger.
It's true that Jaguar has decided to concentrate on the cosmetics with the XF. And why wouldn't it? After years of criticism for dull designs holding back fine dynamics, it's surely wise to make sure the XF looks fresh and modern and family-friendly to lure buyers away from the usual German suspects.
That's why there's so much attention paid to the modern interior with its funky air vents, slick dials and novel lighting packages. The glove box even opens automatically when you hold your hand nearby. (Engineers already admit a fear that customers may get clonked knees, though!).
It'll even be practical, with a 500-liter boot (540 with the space-saver spare, and a huge 960 if you tip the seats forward), and Jaguar promises a generous spec, with leather-trimmed wheel, eight-speaker stereo standard on every model.
First UK sales start in March 2008 when all four engines will be available. The XF will be a four-door only, for now at least. Jaguar is toying with the idea of an estate and coupe version, but times are tight and they're unlikely to appear for a long time, if at all. Prices will be competitive for the class, kicking off at £33,900 for either V6, rising to £45,500 for the V8 and £54,900 for the supercharged SV8. Three trim levels are Luxury, Premium Luxury and SV8.
Would we buy one? Hell yes. The XF is a refreshing bolt in the arm for a company that's currently in commercial crisis, as potential buyers circle now that Ford has announced its intention to sell off Jag and Land Rover.
The only disappointments are the XF's burgeoning weight and the focus on gadgetry over meaningful technology such as hybrid clean-fuel solutions. And the looks? We'll let you decide that one. Click 'Add comment' and tell us what you think.
Jaguar is desperately trying to fast-forward into the future with its new XF, and leave behind the brand's pipe 'n' slippers image that has so damaged sales in recent years. And what better way to dump the old-world image than axing the conventional gearstick?
Today we can bring you the first definitive proof - an unobscured photo of Jaguar's radical new selector.
In place of a conventional gearstick comes an alloy dial reminiscent of BMW's iDrive controller, which pops up about three-quarters of an inch when the ignition is turned on. The driver twists it to change gear on the six-speed ZF auto, and the P, R, N, D or S indicator above lights up to show which gear is selected. A red start button sits prominently above the gear selector.
Below the dial on the alloy plate of the JaguarDrive Selector are four buttons to control the traction and stability control, plus 'Sport' mode signaled by a chequered flag and Jaguar's ASL speed limiter. Finally, an electronic parking brake button nestles near the armrest, absent on this prototype.
You bet. The next car to get the rotary dial gear selector will be Jaguar's XK coupe and cabriolet, but probably not until that car's face lift. It was only launched in March 2006, so mid-life revisions are still more than 18 months away.
Our spies have had an early peek inside the face lifted XK and, while inconclusive, it does look as if there is no conventional gear lever hiding beneath the disguise on this early prototype we caught testing. The next XK and XJ saloon, which share the ZF auto, will definitely get the new transmission device; only the X-type, which will be face lifted later in 2007, will miss out on the new selector.
